The Nation’s All-Time Top 10 Films Featuring Car Chases

01Mar

Following on from the 2016 Oscars which took place last weekend, much discussion surrounds the triumphs of Mad Max: Fury Road, which picked up awards in six of the ten categories it was nominated for. With many fans and critics describing the film as one long chase, a simple question emerged: Would this 2016 Oscar winner be a contender against other classic car chase movies? In an independent survey conducted for JCT600 by Toluna, we uncovered the nation’s favourite movie car chase of all-time.

So,in reverse order, here are the top 10…

10. Gone in 60 seconds (1974)

Gone in 60 Seconds was written, produced and directed, by H. B. Halicki. Starring alongside Eleanor the yellow Ford Mustang, Halicki also took a lead role in the film. Ranking tenth in the nation’s favourite car movie chase of all-time, the film features a 34 minute long pile-up involving a total of 93 cars. Driving through the ports of Long Beach, many of the stunts and accidents involved in the chase were not staged.

9. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)

Although there are many impressive scenes, for many film fans the best is during the beginning of Terminator 2: Judgement Day. When John Connor flees the T-1000, the intense pursuit between the dirt bike and speeding lorry takes place. As Connor enters a viaduct in an attempt to escape, the lorry quickly follows… coming close to death the T-800 shows up to defend him against the T-1000.

8. The Blues Brothers (1980)

The film features the iconic in-door car chase, where in a bid to escape, the sharp suited duo John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd drive their Dodge straight into a busy shopping centre. Hollywood car chases tend to aim to ruin as many cars as possible, in fact the more the better. However, The Blue Brothers took it a step further, by wrecking more police cars than any movie before.

7. The French Connection (1971)

It’s amongst the most unconventional and iconic chase ever filmed. After commandeering a 1971 Pontiac Le Mans, Doyle chases down his enemy who happens to be in a train above the streets of New York City. While most of the chases on this list were filmed in properly cordoned-off areas, this genius scene involves Gene Hackman chasing an elevated train in an open Brooklyn neighbourhood.

6. Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

Smokey and the Bandit was directed by Hal Needham, the first Hollywood stuntman to become a movie director, a job he scored through the help of his pal Reynolds. Burt Reynolds is a moonshine trucker involved in a bet to drive an 18 wheel tractor-trailer (full of bootleg Coors beer) from Georgia to Texas and back in 28 hrs. With spectacular chases and epic stunts Smokey and the Bandit ranked sixth place in the survey of the nation’s all-time favourite movie car chase.

5. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

It’s hard to categorise Fury Road into a single concise sequence of action. Described by critics as one long, explosive, bombastic car-chase, Mad Max: Fury Road was the most recent film to make it into the top-10. The action-packed Fury Road works on so many levels, which is why it was enjoyed by many difference audiences, winning six out of the ten Oscars it was nominated for. However, for us it only ranked fifth place.

4. The Bourne Identity (2002)

Many people would agree that The Bourne Identity features the best car chase scene of all of the three films. Jason Bourne uses Marie’s Mini Cooper to speed through the dreary Paris streets in an attempt to evade the authorities. Hurtling down stairways, mounting curbs and dodging pedestrians, arguably the best moment is when a motorcycle-riding policeman isn’t looking where he’s going and hits a car. Whilst you may associate high-energy car chases with a list of high-end super cars, Jason Bourne reminds us that just as much carnage can be caused in a Mini Cooper.

3. Bullitt (1968)

In this iconic scene the tough-talking Lieutenant Frank Bullitt, played by Steve McQueen chases a Dodge Charger in a Ford Mustang. Speeding over those famous San Francisco humps, the cleverly filmed 11 minute pursuit causes the audience to jump each time Bullitt takes a corner too sharply. Dodging gunshots at his steering wheel, the pursuit ends with the hitmen careering into a gas station before being engulfed in flames.

2. Fast & Furious 6 (2013)

The crazy stunts and the ripe dialogue, Fast & Furious 6 is a long way from where it first started. In the latest part Brian and Dom are forced to return to the fray when Agent Luke Hobbs catches up with them, cutting them a deal if they’ll help him take out British terrorist Owen Shaw.

1. The Italian Job (1969)

This British heist movie starring Michael Caine, finds a group of gold thieves transporting their loot through Italy. Caine’s character Charlie Croker leads a crew of Minis, in an epic chase scene through the streets of Turin. They travel down stairs, through enclosed arcades, up (and back down) a curved rooftop, over an epic traffic jam and, finally, through a series of large sewer pipes. With no special effects it was the MINI’s personality alone that made the scene so impressive.

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